#IWSG: Surprised at the Finish

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting!

Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG

The awesome co-hosts for the September 6 posting of the IWSG are Tyrean Martinson, Tara Tyler, Raimey Gallant, and Beverly Stowe McClure!

Click here to view everyone in the Blog Hop

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Thank you for dropping in for the inaugural post on the brand new Pee Dee Writer's webpage! Today, we will hear from Pee Dee Writer, Suzanna J. Linton.

The optional question for September 6th: Have you ever surprised yourself with your writing? For example, by trying a new genre you didn't think you'd be comfortable in?

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Surprised at the Finish

Writing is an intensely personal experience wherein we engage our minds, hearts, and souls. Therefore, it follows that if we know ourselves, our writing would never surprise us. However, there’s one thing that surprises me over and over in my writing: that I finish at all.

News flash to the uninitiated: writing is hard. What we see in our minds doesn’t always translate onto the page. The story idea that we think would win a Hugo Award may not actually work. And even if we can get what see on the page, and even if the idea works, there are still dozens of road hazards.

In other words, every writing venture is a gamble. There are many risks and potential pitfalls, any of which could lead to us not finishing.

Last year, I published my third novel, Clara’s Return. Learning from experience, I did all I could to promote and sell my book. I did podcast and radio interviews. I used a book trailer, ran contests, and guest blogged. I spent long hours at my desk, trying to reach an invisible world of readers.

The third novel was also the second book I published in two years. Clara came out in 2013. Because of my day job at the time, I didn’t publish anything again until Willows of Fate in 2015. By that point, I had heard that the best thing an indie author could do was be prolific.

I tried to be prolific by publishing a serial novel called The Bookwyrm. However, the project flopped, with most reviews saying the novel needed more editing. It probably didn’t help that I was distracted with other things at the time.

After Clara’s Return was published in May of 2016, I tried to write my next book right away. Willows of Fate was not doing as well as it should and I felt that writing the sequel would boost sales.

Nothing worked, though. I brainstormed and wrote, doing false start after false start. By the fall of that year, I was no closer to a completed first draft than I was when I started at the beginning of summer. I kept pushing, though, taking brief breaks before tackling it again.

Panic started to set in. What if I never finished anything again? Finishing Clara had taken years. Willows of Fate had been an experiment. I didn’t think I was going to complete the novel because of the various problems it presented. Finishing it left me in a mild state of shock. Clara’s Return felt like a breathless race. Completing it left me astounded because it was a third book in a row, not counting the failed serial.

To quote Cumberbatch’s Sherlock, I was on fire. So, what had happened?

Honestly, it was probably a mixture. Most likely, all of the writing and promoting left me burned out. Just because they say a writer should be prolific doesn’t mean being prolific is good for said writer. Also, my creativity was not taking me toward a sequel to Willows of Fate. Rather, I was being drawn back to Clara’s world and the ongoing drama in Bertrand. Instead of daydreaming about Desdemona and her trippy encounter with the Willows, I thought about Jarrett and the price of honor.

After discussing my problem with my editor, I scrapped the second book in the Lands of Sun and Stone Series. The file still sits on my laptop but it remains untouched. When I return to it, I will most likely use some of the scenes but my creativity may take me in a different direction.

My writing surprised me in my latest novel because I finished it. A part of me feared that my ability to write was gone, that I only had three books in me. Finishing it validated me in my talent as well as presenting a pleasant surprise.

Writing can surprise us in a number of ways. Maybe we accomplish a type of project we thought beyond our talents. Or, maybe we come up with a plot twist so brilliant, we question that we really wrote it at all. For me, it’s the act of finishing. Sometimes, life or our own brains get in the way. Our own securities and anxieties can throw up roadblocks. But when we finish, there’s no other feeling like it. I hope I never stop being surprised.

Suzanna J. Linton is the author of Clara, Clara's Return, and Willows of Fate. You can find where to purchase these novels by visiting here.

#IWSG #writing #peedeewriters #suzannajlinton #writer #InsecureWritersSupportGroup